On Waiting
by Iulia
Summary: SasuSaku She tried to remember the women she had met at the delivery room and wondered who among them could do what she couldn’t, who among them could make him stay.


**Author's Notes:** It's been quite a while since I last wrote – and finished – a Naruto fic. And since I was in a SasuSaku mood, I decided to write one~ hehehe~ so yeah, hope you guys like it. ^^ Btw, this fic is an AU, erm, but not much. It's set in the modern day.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Naruto.

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**On Waiting**

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Seeing a childhood friend – Or sweetheart? Or acquaintance, she didn't really know – after more than fifteen years of being apart gave her a simple but heavy insight.

She was old. He was old. _They_ were old – well, older, anyway. Twenty-eight wasn't really _that_ old. But it was enough to get her thinking. Seeing him, and how much he had grown, made her think about her life, about what she was and where she was.

Thankfully, she had some ready answers for those questions. What was she? An accomplished doctor. Where was she? At the city hospital; specifically, at the waiting area for the delivery room.

"Sasuke"

She was about to say '_-kun_' but somehow it felt gritty on her mouth, almost as if her adult self had rejected it. Also, the implications of where they were located were not lost on her. She tried to remember the women she had met at the delivery room and wondered who among them caught his heart. Who among them could do _that_ when she couldn't?

Who among them could make him stay?

Was it the fiery red head who was screaming curses at the staff? It would certainly be unexpected, but then again, she could imagine him getting floored by her outrageous behavior. Or was it that woman with the pale skin and long black hair who looked elegant even at the throes of childbirth? She could certainly understand why he would be attracted to someone like her. Either way, they both seemed so much more interesting than pink-haired, bookish, pretty-but-not-beautiful Sakura.

She had discarded her feelings for him long ago. After all, fifteen years was more than enough time to mend a broken heart. But still, the fact that he was here made her feel defeated. Perhaps it was because she finally had the answer to the question she had asked for more than a decade.

_Wasn't I enough?_

And it was an answer that rattled her hard-earned confidence.

"Sasuke", she called again when he didn't seem to hear her for the first time.

He glanced at her then, and looked at her for a few long seconds, as if trying to register who she was, before giving her a curt nod and going back to his previous position, elbows resting on his knees, hands clasped, head bowed – it was such a familiar pose, one she had seen him in on so many occasions, one that was so painfully _Sasuke, _that she felt her heartbeat quicken, like it used to when they were children. But then, his less-than-friendly greeting promptly brought her spiraling back to reality.

They were old, older, now, and she was no longer smitten with him.

Besides, he was probably distracted. And who could blame him? His _wife – _and the word sent inexplicable ripples of pain through her – was giving birth.

In fact, her mere presence was probably annoying him, again, like it used to when they were kids. Thinking it best to leave, for his sake, and also for her own, she started to walk away but was stopped by his voice.

"No—Sakura, I'm sorry," she turned back and raised a brow at the apology. Sasuke, saying sorry – he was probably more nervous than she initially thought, "I didn't mean to be rude". If her eyebrow was raised before, now, both her eyebrows were raised in honest-to-goodness shock.

It took a moment for her to realize that he was actually patting the seat beside him in a gesture to make her sit down.

Mutely, she moved to obey.

They sat together like that for a while, neither willing to break the tense silence. She felt a pang of pity for him then. He was probably really very nervous if he had to look to someone, _her – _of all people, for support.

Sakura glanced at the clock, suddenly uncomfortable about the time she was wasting. She was supposed to be working, for crying out loud. She couldn't put her life on hold for him, not again.

"Sasuke—"

"Sakura—"

'_Awkward'_, she thought.

"You go first."

"No—no, Sasuke, it wasn't important, you go first."

"No, I insist. Tell me what you were going to say."

She knew that Sasuke would not be budged, not when he was like this, she knew it from experience. So, taking a deep breath, she let it all out.

"Well, Sasuke, here's the thing – I have work, and I, I cannot, _cannot_, put my life on hold for you. Not again. I did that before, and look where that got me – single, unmarried, unattached, on a bench, sitting down with the only man I love, _loved, _the only man I ever _loved_, as he draws some strength and comfort from _me_, because he's scared as shit about whether his wife and baby will be okay. So, no, no, I am _not_ putting myself through this torture, I'm not a masochist, and, and—God damn it!! Stop smirking!"

Her hands, unbidden, went up to her cheek, and she was dismayed to see that there was moisture there. And it irked her, it irked her so much to see Sasuke's cocky smirk. What was he so damn happy about? God damn it, she was crying! Cruel, sadistic, basta—

"So, you're single?"

—BASTARD, BASTARD, BASTARD!!!

"You—you—"

Rage. Pure and unadulterated rage. That was what she felt at that moment. Her eyes turned to slits, she grit her teeth, and she curled her fist, and got ready to deliver the biggest and strongest punch of her whole life.

"So, does that mean I can take you out for some coffee—ow!"

"Bastard!!"

She was breathing hard, and her knuckles were stinging, but she felt vindicated, exultant, victorious – and, what?

"Did you just say you were taking me out for some coffee?"

"And dinner too, _if_ things turned out well."

He sounded annoyed, and he was cradling his jaw with a hand, and he was glaring at her, and he just kinda-sorta asked her out on a date, but he—

"But you're—delivery room—and wife with long black hair or red, or—and oh my God, does it hurt?—I'm sorry—and I—wait, if you're not—why are you here, then?"

The reddening bruise on his jaw made her wince.

"I bribed Naruto with ramen for your schedule and—God, Sakura, where the hell did you learn how to pack such a powerful punch?"

"I'm really sorry about the—uhm, the.."

She gestured to her own jaw, flinching as his glare intensified.

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, he closed his eyes and sighed.

"So, are you still up for that cup of coffee or do you really hate me that much?"

"Coffee?"

"Yes. Coffee. And dinner."

"Just coffee, and dinner?"

"—and a certain promise you gave me, yes."

"You're still a bastard."

"I know. That's why I'm wondering why you still love me."

"Hey, what makes you think I still love you?"

To that, Uchiha Sasuke only rolled his eyes. And Haruno Sakura, well, she could only smile.

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**Fin.**


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